Crispy Miso Chickpea Bowls with Garlic Sesame Dressing

When making our new Garlic Ginger Tahini Miso Dressing I started craving a dish to put it on, and my mind automatically went to a grain bowl with chickpeas and an Asian twist.

So, after testing a few variations I came up with this beautiful Crispy Miso Chickpea Bowl with brown rice, fresh veggies, and a saucy garlic sesame marinade. When added, the Tahini Miso Dressing elevates it to the next level, but it is optional. However, the pairing of the two is super dreamy!

This would make the perfect weeknight meal when you need something satisfying and wholesome on the table fast! Alternatively, store the chickpeas separately and add the sauce to the rice and veggies to marinate, making it the perfect dish to enjoy throughout the week as a quick lunch! This bowl is delicious on its own or elevated with our Tahini Miso Dressing (yes, that’s two dressings — we know we’re extra), and would pair perfectly with something like our Thai Spring Rolls.

Instructions

If serving with grains, prepare at this time (follow links above for instructions).

In the meantime, if preparing chickpeas, preheat oven to 425 degrees F (218 C). Rinse and drain chickpeas well. Then pat very dry — this will help them crisp up.

To a medium mixing bowl add oil, miso paste, maple syrup, and chili garlic sauce or red pepper flake and whisk to combine. Then add chickpeas and toss to coat.

Arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet (or more baking sheets as needed if increasing batch size) and bake for 20-25 minutes, tossing/stirring once at the halfway point to ensure even baking. They're done when crisp and deep golden brown (see photo). Set aside.

Taste and adjust flavor as needed, adding more lime or vinegar for acidity, salt or coconut aminos or tamari for saltiness, maple syrup for sweetness, or chili garlic sauce or red pepper flake for added heat. You want this to be quite flavorful so don’t be shy!

Prepare any vegetable garnishes / toppings at this time and set aside.

This was so good! I’ve pinned it to my fave recipes board – not many recipes end up there :D We added the veggies we had in the fridge as well as some lettuce, and used quinoa instead of rice. I’ll be making it again soon! Thank you!

This recipe was worth the effort 100%. I went the extra mile (as was suggested) to make both dressings and it was BOMB! There were a lot of different moving parts going during the making of the recipe which was totally okay for me because I made it on a Saturday night when I was relaxed. My husband said it was a “flavor explosion.” It was also a very stunning bowl; I used brown rice for the grains, cucumber, bagged mixed cabbage (for slaw), red peppers, shaved carrots and topped the bowl with both dressings and then a sprinkling of sesame seeds. It was PHENOMENAL! Thanks Dana for another inspiring, creative and flavorful recipe!

Made this recipe for dinner this week and it was delish! Super easy to make and very flavorful. I want to put that miso dressing on EVERYTHING. Only modification I did was sub avocado oil for the sesame oil since i can’t eat sesame. Came out perfect and was good the next day as lunch leftovers too!

Such a great healthy lunch! That dressing is so addictive—I used a Microplane for the garlic and grated in a bit of ginger as well, it was amazing. I dress it in the morning so by lunch the veggies have slightly pickled and then throw the crunchy chickpeas on top. So so so delicious

Miso Ginger Dressing: This flavorful dressing is made with ginger, garlic, miso, rice wine vinegar, tamari and sesame oil. You can easily make the dressing oil free by omitting the oil. For soy free, use brown rice or chickpea miso.

I have tried many of your recipes, and this by far has been the best one I’ve ever made! I added the tahini dressing-and let me tell you- flavor elevation was present. I added fresh cilantro when serving and my taste buds were simply in heaven. My full-carnivore friend liked this so much, she told me, “If I ate like this every day, even I would go vegan!”

I made this tonight and wanted to love it (it looks so good in the pics) but instead of crispy and delicious, my chickpeas were just dry and kinda tasteless. I followed the recipe as listed and have an oven thermometer and a timer. i even took the chickpeas out after 18 mins. what is the secret to getting baked chickpeas to actually taste good? i love chickpeas so i bet it’s in the technique

Hmm, did you make any modifications elsewhere? With the miso paste and maple syrup you should have a nice salty-sweet balance, which is complemented with the heat from the chili garlic sauce. Perhaps adding a pinch of salt there could elevate the flavors?

This is such a strange response to my comment, which seems wasn’t read properly? I spoke primarily of texture (and also mentioned that i followed the recipe to a t) and you responded about taste? Confused.

I make a lot of cooked chickpeas to as a snack and I very lightly stir them with olive oil and whatever seasoning I’m in the mood for and cook at 190 C/375 F. I find that the chickpeas always turn out crispy if I open the oven about every five minutes and use a spatula to flip them and continually test until the crisp is just right (usually about twenty minutes in full). Good luck!

THIS IS THE BEST DISH I HAVE EVER MADE. It’s so flavorful, the sauces are amazing!!! I added the optional Quick Ginger Garlic Miso Tahini Dressing – well worth the extra effort to make it! It really was so easy to make this dish. I added bell peppers, cucumbers, shaved carrots, green onion, and cilantro. next time I’ll add some more veggies like sauteed garlic kale, and some roasted cabbage.

Also, the chickpeas get so crunchy with the sauce, and almost caramalized. They are so so so good!

For the dressing, I’d just suggest omitting the oil. For the chickpeas, you can either try reducing the oil by 1/2, or omitting and add more maple syrup to coat as needed! Let us know how it goes if you give it a try.

I made this tonight. Followed recipe as close as I could. Subbed grapefruit vinegar for rice vinegar, and black lentils for rice. Didn’t want to make a trip to store. Made both dressings. Wow, fabulous meal. Husbands says to add this in our rotation!
Thank you for this wonderful recipe.